13 Food Brands You Didn't Know Were Owned By Mega Corporations

It’s no secret: giant corporations are taking over independently-owned and operated businesses at an increasingly rapid rate. As large businesses are acquired by even larger ones, America is becoming a country controlled by only a handful of mega corporations. We’ve found that a number of brands we thought were independent—like Stonyfield and Kashi—are actually owned by global corporations like Dannon and Kellogg’s. And sometimes, corporate giants create brands internally that feel independent in order to tap into a new market—as is the case with Miller Coors’ Blue Moon beer.

The question we’re all asking ourselves is: at what point does the parent company start to interject their corporate philosophy into the brand they’ve acquired? When do they start cutting corners, lessening quality standards, and stop caring about the sourcing of ingredients? It really depends whether the brand owner is devoted to keeping his original commitment to quality or making a pretty penny from the buyout.

Click through the slideshow and see if you’re surprised by any of these seemingly independent brands.

Green & Black's Organic Chocolate

Parent Company: Kraft
Green & Black's is committed to several causes not often associated to its parent company. Organic ingredients, ethical sourcing standards, and fair trade earned the brand a lot of respect amongst environmentally-conscious chocolate lovers. When owner Craig Sams sold the company to Cadbury/Kraft back in 2005, the brand struggled to maintain its "entrepreneurial spirit" and prompted discussions of a partial buy-out. Green & Black's is still with Kraft, but not without positive influence. Tod Stitzer, then the CEO of Cadbury, once thanked owners Craig Sams and Jo Fairley for "showing Cadbury the way with fair trade."

Bear Naked Granola

Parent Company: Kellogg's
Two high school friends—one with a passion for granola and the other with a penchant for business—created Bear Naked Granola in 2002 and watched it grow exponentially in the next four years, eventually selling to Kellogg's for a whopping $60 million. When asked about the big sale to Kellogg's, cofounder Kelly Flatley admitted, "It’s a sense of loss. I’d make the analogy of raising a child: You birth it. It goes to kindergarten. It’s been so close to you and such a part of your life, and then it’s time to go to college. And it takes on a life of its own, and it’s bittersweet. I feel a sense of pride and gratefulness."

Ben & Jerry's

Parent Company: Unilever
Ben Cohen and Jerry Greenfield became fast friends when they met junior year of high school in their hometown of Merrick, Long Island. Neither of their educational careers were going particularly well, so they decided to start making ice cream and sell it out of a renovated gas station in Burlington, VT. Their unique flavors were a hit, and Ben & Jerry's ice cream was soon being sold in restaurants and grocery stores—first in Vermont but nationwide not long after. In 2000, the brand was sold to Unilever (who also owns Breyer's and Good Humor) for an unbelievable sum: $326 million in cash.

Stacy's Pita Chips

Parent Company: Pepsi
Stacy Madison—owner and creator of those delicious, super addictive, best-friend-of-hummus chips we all know and love—started out selling her product from a food cart in Boston. Invented to feed her impatient lunch rush crowd, Madison and her then-husband Mark Andrus decided to bake their day-old pita bread and hand it out to customers in line. In 1998, the duo shut down the cart to focus on the accidental success of their pita chips. By 2006 they were making nearly 65$ million in profit, and not long after Pepsi won the bidding war for Stacy's. The founder did not stay with the brand after it was sold, instead opting to take her kids around Europe for six months.

California Pizza Kitchen

Parent Company: Nestle
Two former federal prosecutors opened their first California Pizza Kitchen in 1985, to almost immediate success. By 1992, they had opened 25 more locations throughout California. CPK changed hands a number of times (it was once owned by PepsiCo), but was eventually acquired by Golden Gate Capitol. CPK's line of frozen pizza was acquired by Nestle in 2010. We still don't know why these guys love putting chicken on their pizza so much.

Honest Tea

Parent Company: Coca-Cola
Honest Tea started when founder Seth Goldman craved a beverage that wasn't too sweet or watery to drink after a long run. He began brewing tea in his kitchen, and it wasn't long until grocery stores were ordering huge amounts of the tea to put on their shelves. In 2011, The Coca-Cola Company purchased Honest Tea for an undisclosed amount of money. (We're guessing it was a lot of dollars.) Seth continues to be the President and "TeaEO" of the company.

Boca Burger

Parent Company: Kraft
Boca Burgers were created by a Boca Raton chef who couldn't find a quality veggie burger. The burgers became so popular he had to open a warehouse next to his restaurant to meet demand. Kraft bought Boca Burger in 2000, causing a lot of backlash from skeptical consumers.

Nantucket Nectars

Parent Company: Dr. Pepper Snapple Group
This juice company was started by Tom First and Tom Scott in 1989. The two ran a floating convenience store that serviced boats on the Nantucket Harbor. One winter night, the two concocted their first juice in a blender. Nantucket Nectars was bought in 2002 by Dr. Pepper Snapple Group and makes a variety of products from teas and lemonades to "Nantucket NectarFizz."

Cascadian Farms

Parent Company: General Mills
Cascadian Farms, which offers a wide variety of organic products from granola bars to frozen fruits and vegetables, began on an actual farm in Washington State. Founder Gene Kahn dropped out of grad school and became interested in organic farming. Soon, he was making a lot of dough selling his organic foods. Recognizing the potential in organically certified products, General Mills bought the company in 2000. The original Cascadian Farm still exists, but it goes without saying it cannot meet the demands of this growing company.

Stonyfield

Parent Company: Dannon
Stonyfield yogurt was created out of necessity. Founders Samuel Kaymen and Gary Hirshberg were running a nonprofit organic farming school in New Hampshire and needed a way to fund it. So, they began milking the farm's seven cows and making yogurt by hand. In 2003, Groupe Danone—makers of Dannon yogurt and Evian water—bought 83% of the company. Though the products are made in factories now, Stonyfield still upholds their organic standards and commitment to environmental causes.

Blue Moon

Parent Company: Miller Coors
MillerCoors was early into the craft beer craze with the creation of Blue Moon, the internally grown brand it launched in 1995. Brewmaster Keith Villa aimed to recreate the citrusy wit beer he fell in love with while studying abroad in Belgium—and after much experimentation, Blue Moon was born. Many people are still unaware that the "craft" beer was actually created by Miller Coors as a way to add a product to their portfolio that appeared independent and artisanal through crafty branding. This, unsurprisingly, has sparked much controversy.

Kashi

Parent Company: Kellogg's
Kashi began as a small breakfast food company out of La Jolla, California in 1984. Founders Philip and Gayle Tauber wanted to create nutritionally-rich breakfasts utilizing whole grains and seeds. Kashi products became so popular with the health conscious crowd that Kellogg's soon showed interest in the company. After making $25 million in sales in 1999, Kellogg's acquired Kashi for an undisclosed amount of money.

San Pellegrino

Parent Company: Nestle
By far the oldest product on this list, San Pellegrino was produced in the Italian town of the same name starting in 1395. Yeah, the water is seriously old. The mineral water is naturally carbonated—a quality which continues to set the brand apart from it's competitors. In the early 1900s, the San Pellegrino company began exporting to main European cities, and eventually, the water was sold internationally. In 1997, San Pellegrino was bought by Nestle, after being privately owned for over a century.

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